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Article Title: Facilitating Mental Health Treatment Through Proactive Screening and Concierge
Services in the Workplace
Maren S Fragala,a Carmen H Tong,a Jennifer L Hunter,b Nicol A Jelovic,b Joanna I Hayward,c Susan Carr,d Paul M Kim,e Matthew
E Peters,e Charles E Birsea
aQuest Diagnostics, Secaucus, NJ; bEmvitals, Cleveland, OH; cGuide+Thrive Powered by BHS, Baltimore, MD; dJohns Hopkins
Healthcare Solutions, Baltimore, MD; eThe Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD
Citation: Fragala MS, Tong CH, Hunter JL, et al. J Occup Environ Med. Published online October 3, 2022.
doi:10.1097/jom.0000000000002707
Background
x In the United States, 1 in 5 adults experience a mental health condition each year,1 and only 46% of those affected receive
treatment.1
x In a previous study, an employer-sponsored mental health program (Johns Hopkins Balance) was found to help identify
individuals with risk for mental health conditions and to connect those individuals to care resources via a mental healthcare
concierge2; however, it was not known at the time if employees received treatment following the intervention.
x Objectives: In this follow-up study, the investigators evaluated healthcare utilization following the implementation of an
employer-sponsored mental health program.
Methods
x The study population comprised employees at a national health services company who participated in the Balance program
from September to December 2019; the program included an assessment of mental health risk.
- Individuals who were categorized as having moderate, high, or severe risk for mental health conditions were offered
care concierge services.
x A retrospective analysis of study (deidentified) data included (1) the number of employees with risk who had completed a
mental healthcare concierge visit in 2019 and had (deidentified) behavioral health utilization data, and (2) the number
employees with risk who did not meet with a healthcare concierge and had data during the study period.
x Behavioral health utilization data was used to inform receipt of mental health treatment; statistical tools were used to
compare the likelihood of receiving treatment related to mental health (ie, prescriptions, professional services, professional
services not used prior to program intervention) among employees who met with a concierge and those who did not (ie,
control group).
Results
x Study participants included 8,170 employees who completed the mental health assessment.
x Of these, 4,309 employees were categorized as having moderate, high, or severe risk for mental health conditions and were
offered care concierge services.
- Behavioral health utilization data were available for 369 of the 541 employees who met with a concierge and for 2,433 of
the 3,674 employees who did not.
x Compared to control employees (n=2,433), employees who had received concierge services were more likely to receive the
following treatments related to mental health in the following 6 months:
- Prescriptions (adjusted HR=1.2; CI: 1.0-1.5; P=0.04)
- Professional services (adjusted HR=1.4; CI: 1.1-1.8; P=0.02)
- Professional services not used prior to program intervention (adjusted HR=1.9; CI: 1.2-2.8; P=0.004)
Conclusions
x These findings suggest that this employer-sponsored mental health program may facilitate the receipt of treatment among
participants identified as having moderate to severe risk for mental health conditions.
References
1. National Alliance on Mental Illness. Mental health by the numbers. Updated February 2022. Accessed May 13, 2022.
https://nami.org/mhstats
2. Fragala MS, Hunter JL, Satish A, et al. Workplace mental health: Application of a population health approach of proactive screening to
identify risk and engage in care. J Occup Environ Med. 2021;63:244-250. doi: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000002116
Concierge Services to Facilitate Treatment Utilization
Key Summary of Published Article
Employee Mental Health
Concierge Services to Facilitate Treatment Utilization
Key Summary of Published Article
